Nantou Canton located in the northwest of Nantou County, Taiwan, Republic of China. It lies between the Bagua Mountains and the Maoluo River and is the seat of Nantou County. Freeway No. 3 serves Nantou City. Its name is a transliteration of the Hoanya word Ramtau with the characters chosen to complement (Beitou), a district in Taipei, even though there is no relation between the aboriginal words.
The Han Chinese began arriving in the area during the reign of Qianlong Emperor. Members of the Zhang clan from Zhangzhou as well as the Jian, Lin and Xiao clans from Nanjing County in Zhangzhou were among the early settlers. A yamen was established in 1759 near the present Nantou Elementary School.